Despite repeated assurances that its vetting processes were rock solid, Labor has suffered its first citizenship casualties, with ACT senator Katy Gallagher and the Member for Batman David Feeney off to the High Court in the new year.

There could be more referrals before Parliament rises, but the most likely scenario is that MPs in similar circumstances will await the court's decision in those cases.

The bid failed because ultimately, no-one has the numbers on the floor of the House to resolve the dispute.

Even with their benches full, Labor and the crossbench are short when the speaker casts his vote.

The Government does not have the numbers either, and that means it cannot pull a partisan move to refer just the Labor MPs and the NXT MP.

But the move proved partisan politics is at play.

The Prime Minister wants Parliament to deal with each citizenship case individually and was particularly incensed with Labor's bid to refer Mr Hawke, given the MP has a letter from the Greek Government confirming he "cannot be considered a Greek citizen or national".